Vital

I am inspired to be my vital me, like the white-tailed deer, Bambi, reminding me that we are inextricably linked to all in the forest family. If we concur that the food and fur of our forest doe becomes the fuel and the fleece of the world we sow, powering us in peace to vitally grow; then we should well know… when we look into the mirror, we are both the hunter and the hunted–the deer. Indeed, we are the forest and the foe—the death-the life-the death-the life of nature’s flow. That this is sacred truth is real, conscious hunters from ancient Europe to Medieval Japan to modern America in their stories of forest adventures and hunting expeditions, reveal. For to vitally survive, the huntress must gracefully navigate her way through the forest’s steep, dark, and treacherous terrain. And it is only here that the deer trains us to leap from tree log to bramble to brush with grace on perfect cue… as the elusive white-tailed deer appears and disappears, seamlessly into the autumn forest hue. It’s just so clear, the deer is the forest… and the forest is the deer. So vital is she to sustain life by living and by dying that even the Buddha chose the Golden stag to reside aside him in eternal contemplation by the Boddhi tree on either side. Further, traveling West to the forests of Northern Europe, we also learn in the Celtic lore that the forest guardian, Cernunnos, appears always wearing deer antlers with pride, while his Mediterranean counterpart, Artemis on his deer-drawn chariot will ride and ride, searching for worthy hunters and huntresses to transform into white-tailed deer bucks and does, most dignified. So in the end and in the beginning, what do we learn from the white-tailed deer? We learn that like the deer, we are a part of nature and when we truly tune in to life’s sacred hunt, we realize we are vital.

Reflection: What forest hardship or challenge in your recent past have you gracefully navigated toward a solution that resolved in the recognition of the value of your vital self?

Challenge: Recall and trace the psychological path you took to emerge from that challenge, so you can repeat it next time you venture into a dark forest.